The term, “Shabby Chic”, was first used in the 1980s by avant garde interior decorators. I first encountered it in the early 1990s, I bought an issue of a magazine dedicated specifically to Shabby Chic.

The furniture and accessories appear to come from thrift stores and rubbish bins. This look is then offset with poofy, sheer fabrics that are “artfully” draped across windows, and spill out of drawers. It is decor, only the owner can adore.

There are people who can successfully pull off the Shabby Chic look, but they’re a rare breed. Many of the examples I’ve come across just look like messy houses. I get the urge to tidy things up. Shabby Chic in my house would be an utter disaster. Even if done “right”, I doubt if I could live with it for even a year. It’s not that I’m snobbish, my present environment is eclectic and neat. I could accomplish Shabby Chic by just neglecting to pick up after myself, keeping the bed unmade, and retiring the vacuum cleaner.

That said, I do have a reluctant admiration for a Shabby Chic home that is skillfully put together. The people who can assemble “found” furniture, accessories, and wares into a coherant theme create artful home environments that are pleasing to the eye. They have a certain knack or talent they have perfected through trial and error. The results are rooms that look artful but not too contrived.

I purposely experimented with the Shabby Chic style this week with three arrangements done up in old, but unflawed pottery. the floral designs are very casual and are arranged with informality as the theme.

The Shawnee ram planter is an odd, interesting piece that would look nice on a knick knack shelf or in a pie safe with other collectables. The sketchy floral design helps it to blend in with flawed furniture.

Urns are popular accessories in Shabby Chic rooms. The same goes for fruity vines. The two elements come together with a 1960s Brush pot and new hobby store greenery and berries.

The dark green Miramar of California planter is home to a fluffy array of recycled blooms from an earlier project. This might look good on a distressed night stand next to an antique bed.

CiaoThe Blue Jay of Happiness quotes the writer Edward Dahlberg. “Genius, like truth, has a shabby and neglected mien.”